There's a light that never goes out
by Capuchon
Summary: Marriage Law fic. Hermione and Fred get paired together and Charlie's fiancée is already famous in the Weasley family for... breaking Percy's nose. Song fic. My first Fanfic
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Hermione woke up late after a restless night of sleep. This was the day she had been dreading since they had passed that awful marriage law. Every witch and wizard in Britain had to get married before the end of the year and matches will be made for people who had not been already engaged or in a committed relationship for one year or more before the law was passed.

Harry and Ginny had proof that they were in a relationship since sixth grade so they were exempted. But in the Weasley family, they were the only ones. Harry and Ginny have to get married like the others but they don't have the added problem of not knowing their future spouse. Hermione had looked over the law over and over again. She had to acknowledge that it was well thought : couples had to provide at least two children, had the permission of changing the match if they have a different religion, or irreparable views on the most important areas of life. They had the opportunity of not marrying an eventual match with a former Deatheater, which was a relief for everyone. Only witches and wizard out of school or of age are concerned with the law and people over 45 were exempted. Also none of the people who have acknowledged their homosexuality had to get married. Since the purpose of the law was to make children, that made sense in Hermione's mind.

However, she was deeply worried of the selection method used to provide the newfound 'couples'. Every wizard in the country had to perform personality tests to allow the officials to find a match for them.

Hermione was scared. She didn't want to get married to a stranger. With her luck, she would get stuck with a 45 year-old government official looking for a housekeeper, or even worse, with Ron. They had ended their relationship over a year ago, by mutual consent. He spent that year shagging his way across Britain, and playing quiddich. She chose to spend her time taking care in her career as a member of the International Wizarding Community. Although it was difficult at first, they were in good speaking terms. He even offered to petition for her hand (as members of the Golden Trio, he had a good chance of obtaining the match) but she had refused. They knew already that they would drive each other crazy.

She was not the only one in waiting for what the Weasley Twins called 'the Death Sentence'. They were both single and known ladies' men in Wizarding London.

Fred had been dating Alicia Spinnet but she had died during the battle of Hogwards, saving a bunch of First years trapped under the stairs. She was not the only one who died during the battle. Hermione still could not forget the dead bodies of Tonks and Lupin laying in the Great Hall. Hell, even Fred had almost died, if a witch nobody knew before that had not thrown a protecting charm in his direction, he would have been hit by a killing curse.

The Twins, Ron, Charlie, Percy and herself all were waiting for the letters to arrive. Luna and Neville had eloped right after the Battle so they were not concerned by the law. Harry had managed to propose to Ginny and get their engagement approved by the Ministry. The Twins were not happy about the law, but soon saw the bright side of the situation : their mother will finally be off their backs for settling down and start their own family. Ron thought it would mean that he was getting someone to prepare his food and wash his clothes, Charlie was deeply worried that it would mean he would have to move back to England and leave the dragon reserve behind and Hermione was worried that her 'fiancee' would make her giving up on her career.

As for Percy, he quickly saw a different side of the law. As he was an official government member, he had to break down the news to some people after the law had passed. The reactions were not always good. One very unhappy girl had thrown her fist into his nose, breaking it quite efficiently, and a father who did not want his daughter married to a stranger had set his robes on fire. Those incidents were hilarious to the Weasley family, except Mrs Weasley and Percy himself, and the Twins had gotten the inspiration from it for their new best seller : The Robe FireCatcher.

Hermione decided to close her eyes and tried to have some sleep before the great announcement. However, she did not intend on sleeping until 11 in the morning. She woke up to the sound of Ginny screaming voice. 'The letters are here!'. Hermione jumped up off her bed, quickly put on some jeans and a t shirt and ran down the stairs. She arrived in the crowded living room. Every member of the Weasley family – included extended close family - were here to share the good, or bad news. Sitting down in the couch were Bill and his very pregnant wife, Fleur. Next to them was Charlie, who looked like he was going to be sick at any moment. Sitting down on the floor were Fred and George, who, for the first time in their life, looked deeply serious . Harry was sitting on one of the chairs with Ginny in his lap and Ron behind him walking nervously across the living room. Percy arrived in the kitchen carrying the letters, while Mr and Mrs Weasley stood in the door frame. Hermione noticed that Luna and Neville were there, along with the Twin's friend Lee. Lee was exempted from the law, coming out of the closet ages ago.

Percy handed the letters to each of the livid looking members of the family. Hermione's shaking hands almost dropped that letter. Ron ripped opened his letter and announced 'Lavander Brown. Oh, that is quite right'.

Percy opened his with something that resembled dignity and announced with a clear voice : 'Penelope Clearwater', which did not surprised anyone.

Hermione finally mustered the courage of opening her letter. She lay dumbstruck as she read the name on her letter. Frederick Weasley. Frederick. Weasley. _Fred_. Fred. She was getting married with Fred. She stared at the letter for a long time, and only snapped out of it when she heard George's voice yelling, 'Angelina Johnson ! Wicked !'. Hermione looked up to Fred. Who was currently staring at his letter, then his brother, then his letter again, until he finally looked up to her. She saw in his eyes the same surprise she was feeling with a little bit of amusement, and even challenge. Then, he beamed up at her. She found herself smiling too. 'It could have been much worse' she thought. However, she did not expect him to get up, throw his letter to his twin, walk up to her and lay the mother of all kisses on her. Like a real kiss, with passion, and happiness. Her surprise was soon covered by everyone screams of surprise. Mrs Weasley soon demanded to know what was going on. Fred put an end to the kiss, put his arm around her shoulders and announced clearly :

"Well, meet my fiancée, Hermione Jean Granger, soon to be Weasley."

That announcement caused so much noise in the living room it made Hermione's head spin. Mrs Weasley started to cry of happiness while yelling 'Finally, my daughter! Oh, I'm so happy, you'll make the sweetest babies!' which made Hermione cringe. _Oh my God_. She would have to have Fred babies. Trouble makers. If they had their parent's intelligence, combined with their father's taste for chaos and her ability of finding herself in the middle of disasters, she was in for a world of trouble. Ginny and Harry were jumping with joy around the room, while Ron looked as if he had been struck with a bolt of lightning. Hermione realized how weird it would be for him. Everyone in the room fell silent while waiting for Hermione's ex-boyfriend's reaction. Minutes seemed like hours until Ron finally snapped out of it and turned to his brother and his new fiancée.

"Well, I guess congratulations are in order."

Ron hugged his brother and gave Hermione a soft smile. Mrs Weasley seemed on the verge of tears as she watched her sons make the most of a difficult situation. Everybody cheered up and life seemed to get back on track, at least until they heard Charlie's voice from the other end of the living room.

"Who in Godric's name is Alice Tremont ?"

Everybody felt silent. Hermione was sure she had heard that name before but she couldn't replace it. Fleur spoke up "She was in Beauxbaton a few years below my year. She is a very brilliant witch, she was a member of the European Order. I never heard of her again after the war, I never thought much of it."

Most of the people in the room knew that the European Order had suffered many losses. One of the safe houses had been completely destroyed by Deatheaters and what was left of the Order fought during the battle of Hogwards. Nobody knew her but they had a newfound respect for her. At least everybody except Percy. He looked as if he was about to be sick and he kept touching his nose as he was thinking.

"She's the one who broke my nose."

With that sentence, half the room bursted out laughing. She had definitely earned the respect of the Twins, and Charlie seemed a bit relieved that his wife-to-be was not a sissy. Hermione could not picture the dragon keeper with a girly-girl like Lavander.

Mrs Weasley decided to bring a bit of order in the room and stated that everybody should owl their fiancées so that they could meet up to make arrangements. Percy had already apparated away to Penelope's house and Angelina had flooed in. Fleur and Mrs Weasley started to make plans for the oncoming weddings.

Fred came behind Hermione and spoke softly into her ear.

"Wanna get out of here ?"

She nodded and bid her goodbyes to Mrs Weasley. Fred told his mother that Hermione and himself would not attend the meal that day and were going to enjoy each other for a while. They got out of the garden and walked in silence to the apparition point of the Burrow. Fred smiled up at her and apparated them to his flat.

They stumbled in the middle of his living room. Fred steadied her and kept his hand on her shoulders. He smiled tenderly at her and gave her a very chaste kiss on the lips. The romantic side of Fred was very surprising to Hermione. Pleasantly so.

'Sooo, what do you want to do now', said Fred, wiggling his eyebrows.

Hermione laughed at his antics.

"Well, maybe we should get to know each other. Well, you know, we know each other but not in the dating kind of knowing each other. Maybe we should just…"

She was rambling. So he cut her off by kissing her again. This time it was less chaste. She found it very, very nice. He let her go and looked at her in the eyes

"Granger, you're rambling. Let me just say something and then you can go back to rambling about knowing each other and whatever you want to ramble about. I like you. I always did. I have always found you to be an attractive bird, but you were hypnotised by my baby brother, so I never acted on it. I'm not saying I'm desperately in love with you or something like that, I'm just saying, I'm very happy we got stuck together by that crazy stupid law. It could have been a disaster. We could be in very horrible first dates right now. We are friends. We can work together in this relationship together and build a family. Who am I kidding, my mother think you are family already, that is a big relief. I would pay money to see her reaction to Lavender. Anyway, I'm rambling now, so I'm going to let you ramble for a while."

He sat down on the couch and looked at her waiting for her to respond. She sat down with her legs under her and smiled.

"Whoah, Fred, I never took you for a sensible young man. You're right. We are lucky. I'm so glad we got together. I won't say I ever looked at you with that way before. I always thought you were brilliant and attractive, but I still don't know that much about you. Maybe we will find something on which we have different views…"

"I don't want to cut you there my dear, but I'm sure we will have different views about things. Do you really think couples never fight on tiny little details? Let's go the the most important points, so that we will know where to go from there. That seems acceptable for you, milady ?"

"Sure," she said with a smile for his new nickname.

"Okay, let's start with a big subject : kids ? You do want kids right ?"

Hermione looked uncomfortable at that question. Fred was deeply worried by the frown on her face.

"Well, I always wanted kids. Maybe not as much as your mother had, but still, one or two to start. But my mother had a lot of trouble with the conception of a child and she had a lot of miscarriages before having me. I'm an only child, but that was not my parent's initial plans. My father wanted a house full of kids, and he only got me. I want kids someday, but I am really scared that I will not be able to have one."

Fred could see that the subject was sore for her. He gently took her hand and kissed her palm.

"Hey, be merry, when the time comes, let's remember that I'm a Weasley and that we are superproductive when it comes to children. We'll see when the time is right. What happens happens, and if it doesn't happen, we could still adopt, or get George to make one for us."

Hermione laughed out loud at that proposition.

"I'd really like to see Angelina's reaction when you asked her for her womb to rent. But you're right; we'll see when the time comes. All right, another important subject : work !"

"What about it? I own a joke shop, I don't see what I'm… Wait, wait, you're not going to make me give up on the shop right? I don't think I would qualify as a Ministry employee; I wouldn't be welcome at Hogwards as the new potion master either…" Hermione looked puzzled at this. She never pictured him as anything else as he was doing.

"No, no! I meant my job. I really don't want to give up my position at the IWC."

"Ooooh, well, you do whatever makes you happy. The shops are going well so that if you want to stop working you can, I'll be able to support us, but that is your choice. I do realize you are going to work late sometimes, and while I'm not happy about it, I won't throw a fit because you're not there to cook me supper. I've got my mother for that."

Hermione was relieved. When she was dating Ron, he was blaming her for her lack of housekeeping skills. She shared that thought with Fred and he actually looked hurt by her comment.

"Listen, love, it is public knowledge that my brother has the emotional range of a tea spoon. I'm not Ron. I love him, but man, I think he is annoying. While he never learnt how to take care of himself, I'm a grown man who can take care of a house. I'm a decent cook, George is the one who is the champ of the cleaning spells. We'll be fine Hermione. I've got another thing to tell you. I'm a twin. I've lived all my life with George, and I don't know how to start living without him. We won't live with him and Angie, don't you worry about that, but don't be upset if I need to be with him sometimes, he's one of my priorities, you know, with the shop, you and the rest of the family. He's the other side of me, we need to go out and take a beer once in a while."

Hermione smiled. "Oh, I understand. I might have to fight the urge to go and check on Harry every hour sometimes. Don't be jealous of Harry please. He's my brother. I hope you can understand that."

"Of course love, I won't pull a Ron and get over jealous about him. I have to say that I am a jealous guy , but I will work on that. I promise. Pinky swear ?"

He looked at her expectantly with his little finger up in the air. She laughed and answered him with her own finger.

"I believe you. I know we are going to make this work. "They looked at each other with their fingers linked together until Hermione broke the silence and asked to see those marvellous cooking skill he was bragging about.

"Anything to please milady !"

Charlie had to get out of here. He could not stand his mother in the state of happiness she was in at that moment. He was mad. He was the only one who got a complete stranger as a match. Who the hell was this girl. She could be a horrible human being. The fact that she was a member of the Order did not mean she was gold. Damn. She went to Beaubatons with Fleur. A French girl. He liked his sister in law but he would kill himself if he got her doppelganger as a match. He was pacing in the orchard and he did not know what to do. He was tempted to flee the country and go live in the wilderness till the last of his days, but his mother would have a heart attack if he did that. He was thinking about jumping down a cliff when he received a letter on his head. A beautiful black owl was hovering next to his head. He slowly took the letter and read what it said

Dear Charles (or Charlie, or Chuck, whatever you like )

My name is Alice Tremont, I'm sure you have received the letter that binds you with me forever. I'm sorry I can't meet you in person right now, but I am out of the country this weekend. I hope we can meet Sunday night, at 9. I work in a muggle bar in London but we could see each other there in a non-hostile environment (I can't really picture you meeting my mother on the first date and if I remember correctly, you share the same family name as the official whose nose I have broken (still not sorry about that), perhaps a bar is the lesser of two evils.) I hope the match didn't disappoint you and that you were not expecting to see somebody else's name on the letter. Well, I guess you didn't expect to see my name either, but it must be horrible for people who are not sorted with their love. Anyway, I'm rambling. I can't wait to meet you in person. Bring some friends with you at the bar, I might not have a lot of time until 11. Perhaps we could meet at 8.30 at _Green's Lantern_, so that we can introduce ourselves.

Love,

Alice

Well. That gives him a few days to get ready. Oh god. She seemed nice. Caring. He had to admit that he was so deep into his misery that the thought of her being separated from a loved one didn't enter his mind. She had broken Percy's nose, something he had always dreamed to do. She worked at a muggle bar. That was unexpected. Fleur said she was a very bright witch, he didn't picture her to be a waitress. Anyway, he decided he could deal with that. He conjured a piece of parchment and confirmed his presence the next evening. He apparated to his sister's house to see if she would care for a run in a muggle bar to meet his fiancée. Ginny would know what to do.


	2. Chapter 2

**Waw, thanks for your support so far ! I'm really happy you seem to enjoy it ! I will try and update as soon as I can! As usual, nothing you recognize belong to me**

The next evening Charlie was a mess. He was nervous. His mother had tried to cut his hair and make him wear a suit. He went at Harry and Ginny's in dark jeans and a green shirt. He did not see the point in changing his appearance, she would have to marry him, better not start with false hopes. Ginny and Harry accepted to go with him and Fred and Hermione offered to join them. Harry had heard about the bar Alice worked in. It was a bar with live bands that played on the weekends. It was quite popular in both Muggle and Wizard London. He waited for his sister and Harry and when they were ready to go, each apparated to the bar.

The bar looked cosy while Charlie looked as if he was about to faint. Fred and Hermione were already there and speaking with the bartender. They found a table big enough for all of them and ordered beer. Hermione told them that the bar was half magic, half muggle, mainly for muggle-born wizards and witches who wanted to meet up with their muggle friends and family on a neutral ground, and that the bartender was a year above Fred at Hogwards. She had asked about Alice and the bartender said she was not there yet and that he would direct her to their table when she arrived. The waiter came forward with their drinks and Charlie downed his beer in two seconds. The rest of his family looked at him with a surprised look on their faces.

"Well, Alice dear, I think your husband to be is a ragging alcoholic. I feel so sorry for you."

The mocking voice came from behind them. The response came out so quickly they didn't have time to prepare for it.

"You know James, if I had to see your ugly face for the first time, I would need alcohol too."

Everybody turned towards the bickering sound of the two. Charlie looked for the first time at his fiancée. He did not know what kind of girl he was expecting, but he was not expecting someone like her. She was a tiny little blond with grey eyes. She was pretty but looked very young. He was not the only one staring. The James guy she was with looked at him with an appraising look.

"You always were a lucky bitch you know ! If I had to get a match, I would have ended up with a very very ugly witch. You just scored an Adonis without even trying."

"James ?"

"Yes dear?"

"Shut up."

She left him and quickly sat on a chair next to Charlie. She introduced herself to all of them. Then she turned towards Charlie and offered her hand to shake. He was dumbstruck. He had no idea how to deal with a girl he knew he was getting married to. He suddenly realized that she had her hand extended for about twenty seconds and he still hadn't moved a muscle. He quickly shot up his hand to take hers and knocked over a glass. He was feeling embarrassed. Alice looked towards her friend who had said : 'you still got it Alice !'. She shooed him away.

"So, you're Charles Weasley. That's pretty much all I know about you. "

"Charlie, actually. You also know that one of my brothers works for the ministry. "

She looked sheepish at that.

"Oh, God, you're mad at me for breaking his nose? I was so upset because of the law, and he looked at me with this pompous look on his face. He actually told me that it could bring me a better match that I would have been able to do without the law. I found that incredibly insulting so I broke his nose. "

She stopped and took a large gulp of beer, trying to hide her embarrassment. Fred looked at her with a bewildered look on his face. Suddenly, he got up, and kneeled next to her.

"Oh my God, you are my new goddess. Well, you will have to share that title with 'Mione over there, but you have already managed to do something we all always dreamed to do but we were too afraid to. You are the new moon of the Weasley's household, let me assure you of that."

Alice was feeling a bit uncomfortable about that and looked toward Hermione to see her reaction. Fortunately, Hermione was laughing her ass off at her fiancée's antics. After this, the ice was broken. Charlie was always the silent type and let his fiancée and his family make most of the conversation. Hermione broke the easy conversation they fell into to ask Alice a question :

"You look so familiar, have I seen you before ?"

Alice smiled before answering. "I guess we never got really introduced to each other but I work with the International Wizarding Community. International help department."

"Do you work with Adam Buckley then ? Is he still managing the department ?"

Alice looked embarrassed at the mention of his name. Charlie's mind immediately went to overdrive and pictured the thousand possible reasons why she would be embarrassed. Number One on the imaginary list : she was having an affair with him and they had sex on every surface available in the office. Which brought on two different thoughts. Firstly, he was picturing a man he never met in his life and was insanely jealous about it, and secondly, he just imagined his future wife naked while she was introducing herself to the rest of his family. There was no time for a hard-on for a girl whose age was still a mystery. He quickly tried to readjust himself without anyone noticing, and tried to pay attention to what she was saying.

"I just got promoted actually, I'm the new head of the department."

Charlie was impressed. She was clever on top of being hot. Life had definitely improved since yesterday morning.

Fred interrupted his train of thoughts with a question.

"Wait, you don't work in a bar ? Why are we meeting here then ?"

"Oh, you might just find out." She said with a mysterious tone. She hopped down her seat and walked towards the scene where the band was getting ready. The James guy she was with before strapped on a guitar and talked to the crowd that had gathered for the beginning of the concert.

"Hi everyone, I hope your evening has been faring alright until now. Are you ready ?"

The crowd answered by yelling 'YES' and the music started. Charlie tried to spot his fiancée on the scene and found her sitting on a piano.

They started to play. Charlie didn't know the song but both Harry and Hermione started jumping on their seats.

"And I would walk 500 miles, and I would walk 500 more…"

Most of the crowd was jumping up and down at the sound. Charlie was mesmerised by his fiancée's voice. She was singing along with James and their duet was beautiful. She looked so happy singing it made him smile. Time passed so quickly and the songs followed. James sang quite a few of them, some slows, some with more rhythm. Alice was playing the piano and singing backups when needed. At one point, James took a guitar and sat down in the edge of the scene. Alice got up and took the centre of the stage. Complete silence took over the entire pub. James started to play a very slow rhythm and Alice's voice started to be heard.

'I got chills, they're multiplying. And I'm loosing control. Cause the fire you are supplying Is electrifying'

Harry looked at Hermione and said "Is it what I think it is ?" Hermione confirmed and started to sing along. The members of the Weasley family looked at each other with quizzical looks. Harry noticed they hadn't a clue of what was going on. He explained 'It's a cover from a song from a musical, but the rhythm is very different'.

They listened quietly until the end of the song, and when another song started, Hermione was practically bouncing off her seat. She was the only one who really knew the lyrics, Harry hadn't had the opportunity of listening that much to the wireless during his time at the Dursley's and the other ones having never heard of the songs before.

"They're sooo good, I love it!" Hermione jumped up and down under the gaze of her fiancée, who looked as if he had just met his future wife for the first time. He never knew that Hermione knew how to let her hair down, and that was one of his worries. If weird muggle music made her happy, he was happy too.

Ginny and Harry had gotten up and started dancing, Fred and Hermione quickly joined them. Charlie was left sitting at the table, watching his future wife dancing on stage with James, while the other musicians kept on playing. She looked happier on stage than she had been with him. She was nice and polite, but on stage she looked… alive. That was the word he was looking for. When she was playing the piano, she seemed to light up with grace and happiness.

They kept on playing a few more songs, and announced that they were done for the day. They bowed, under constant applause and quickly left the stage.

The two couples came back to sit with Charlie, looking exhausted but happy.

"Damn Granger, I didn't know you could swing like that" Fred said pulling her close to him. Hermione grinned and didn't reply. Harry went to get another round while Hermione explained to the Wesley's that the songs the band had performed were 70's and 80's classic muggle songs.

A few minutes afterwards, Alice and her friend James came back to the table.

"Hello again everyone", Alice started, "I wanted you to officially meet James, my fabulous best-friend". James pretended to pose for imaginary photographers, making most of the table laugh. Charlie did not find him that funny. Actually, he was terribly bothered that Alice hadn't let James' hand go. Alice and James sat down at the table and listened carefully to Hermione's and Ginny's praises for the music.

Fred spoke up, effectively silencing them

"We would like to know if you would consider playing at our wedding". There was a moment of silence, because no one looked more shocked by that proposition than Hermione. She quickly recovered and agreed with her fiancée.

"Actually, it might be good, with my muggle background and everything…" James and Alice looked slightly uncomfortable. James answered: "One member of the band is actually a muggle, he doesn't know anything about magic, so it would involve a major revelation on our parts. But, if we manage to figure something out, it would be with pleasure."

Ginny looked slightly disappointed that she hadn't asked for them to play at her wedding first, but let it go after a while. Everyone let James make the conversation, as he was unstoppable. Around midnight though, Ginny and Harry excused themselves, claiming to have an early morning the next day. Hermione and Fred followed them quickly afterwards.

Silence fell at the table once only Charlie, Alice and James remained. After one solid minute of uncomfortable silence, James quickly got up, said something about a hot date waiting for him, muttered something in Alice's ear about the next morning, and shook Charlie's hand. "It was a pleasure meeting you". Something in his tone made Charlie's insides tremble. For a slight moment, the cheerful James that he had spent the evening with had disappeared. He was replaced by a very serious looking guy, who, Charlie just noticed it now, was huge. Charlie was stocky, and could have been qualified as a strong man, but in a fist fight, he was not sure who would come out victorious. Those few seconds were soon over, and James wished them a good night, winked at them and advised Alice "not to do anything he wouldn't".

Silence fell again on the table. Charlie was getting more and more uncomfortable. Alone at last. He had not the slightest idea of what to say to his future wife. Just looking at her was plainly sufficient for him.

"Did you enjoy your evening ?" He was taken by surprise by this, and mumbled a quick yes. Charlie mentally kicked himself for letting the attempt at conversation die out. He summoned all of his courage and asked her the only question he could think of:

"How long have you been playing?" Alice proceed to tell him about how she first learned how to play classical music, and during their teenage years, she and James went through a rebellious age and started a muggle heavy metal band.

"It was mainly to annoy his parents, they never really understood him" Alice said with a sad smile on her face.

Charlie was getting annoyed by James' constant presence. He tried not to let it show during the evening, but was relieved when Alice's friend finally left them. If he was her only subject of conversation, they would soon reach a dead end. Feeling annoyed, and remembering her comment about any disappointment he would have about their matching, he asked her what would soon appear as the stupidest question he ever asked, while slamming his empty glass on the table.

"How long have you been together then?"

Alice looked at him with a puzzled look on her face. Then understanding dawned on her and she burst out laughing.

"Oh.. My… God, you think James and I…. This is hilarious" she said in between fits of laughter. She regained her composure when she saw that Charlie was, in fact, not amused by it.

"Oh come on, how thick are you? James is gay. Not only is he gay, but he is like the gayest person you will ever meet in your whole life. For God's sake, I introduced him as "my fabulous best friend" and the first thing he said was how hot you were."

Charlie never felt more stupid in his entire life. After she pointed it out, it was obvious that he would never be a threat to his marriage.

"Oh Dear Boy, you're marrying the stupidest wizard in Britain" Charlie finally said.

**The songs in this chapter are:**

**- The Proclaimers - I'm gonna be**

**- You're the one that I want (Grease) - Angus and Julia Stone cover**


	3. Chapter 3

_There's a light that never goes out – Chapter III_

_**Hey everyone ! Thanks for the support, I'm new to writing so I'm still adjusting to the format and stuff! I'm still looking for a beta reader, English isn't my native language, but I'm trying to improve ! Hope you enjoy it !**_

**Nothing you recognize belongs to me !**

* * *

Alice was tired. She put her quill down and closed her eyes for a second. _Uuugh, only 11.30, Uuuugh Monday morning_. She planned on skipping lunch to have a much-needed nap. She had stayed at the bar until 2 in the morning trying to get to know her future husband. Trying being the key word there. He was impossibly quiet. She loved talking, but at one point, she ran out of subjects. She hadn't dared asking him about children or jobs. Or even anything wedding-related. She felt as if he would have given his left and right arms to be anywhere but there with her. She was already running out of patience. She wasn't going to put up with that kind of behaviour for a long time.

Feeling herself getting even angrier than she was before, she decided to go outside and take the fresh air for a while. She couldn't get any work done anyway. She quickly put her jacket, opened the door, and walked head first into the person that was standing in front of her office. The choc was more violent than either expected, and they both fell down.

"Ouch", Alice heard. "If I had known, I would have sent an owl first!" Alice did not recognize the other person's voice at first, but a glance at the incredibly bushy hair reminded her that Hermione Granger did, in fact, work at the same place as she did.

"Hermione, hi, I'm so sorry!" Alice quickly got up her feet and offered a hand to pull Hermione up as well.

"No worries, I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to meet me for lunch, if you don't have anything planned" Hermione looked hopeful. "I know we are not exactly friends, but we are marrying into the same family, so I figured we could get to know each other, without the fiancés to impress"

Alice laughed at that. "Sure, would you mind if we go out and eat though, I kinda need the fresh air"

"No problem, lead the way"

They went out in the nearby park and bought sandwiches on the way. The International Wizarding Community office was outside magical London, in a quiet muggle suburb. The witches and wizards working there were accustomed to the muggle way of living, so cohabitation went smoothly.

They sat down on a bench and Alice asked Hermione about herself.

"Not much to know, muggle-born, friends with Harry Potter, which came with a lot of adventures, if I can call it this way, I've been more or less adopted by the Weasley family since I was 15 so I know all of them quite well, even though I wasn't expecting being matched with one of them. "

Alice felt a lot better. She could make friend with Hermione. She was nice and she obviously was able to fend for herself. Alice had a slight problem with getting along with girls when she was at Beauxbatons. She always had James and Max, so she never had to make an effort. Anyway. She tried to pay attention to Hermione's tale about her parents and her muggle upbringing and smiled.

"What about you then" Hermione asked "last night so much information were given, I can't seem to remember most of it, sorry"

"Don't worry about that, I've forgotten the name of Charlie's sister, and I didn't dare to ask for it again" Alice thought it was Jenny or something like that but the conversation was already strained with her fiancée that she didn't want to piss him off on top of it by forgetting the name of his relatives.

"it's Ginny, but don't worry, there's so many Weasleys you're going to get confused at one point of another. Especially with Georges and Fred"

"I've heard about their shop, I definitely have to pop by at one point or another"

"They already worship you because you broke Percy's nose" Hermione smiled "they probably will give you discounts for life"

Alice smiled. She couldn't wait to meet the other half of the Weasley twins. Fred was, with Hermione, the person she had connected with the most. It was a shame that, unlike his brother, her future husband seemed to be oblivious to the art of conversation.

"To answer your initial question though, I'm 23, my mother is a muggle British woman and my father a Belgian wizard, but I've lived in England my whole life. My father insisted that I went to BeauxBatons, as some kind of "French heritage" Alice explained. "I didn't care either way, I just wanted to be with James and Max. It was a struggle to convince their parents to let them go there apparently, but we managed" Alice smiled as she remembered those happy moments. It was only twelve years ago. How was that even possible?

"You seem to be very close to James, he looks… what's the word, magnificent ? "

"Fabulous is probably the most accurate term. You did notice he was gay, right ?"

"Of course, that man is like a personified rainbow" Hermione answered. Alice laughed and proceeded to tell her how Charlie thought they had been dating at one point.

Hermione laughed and said : "And here I was, thinking that Ron was the most clueless member of the Weasley family" Seeing the quizzical look on Alice's face, she went on and talked about the third part of the golden trio. They shared some stories about their schools years, each having been part of a trio of friends. Alice had been telling the tale of how Max and James had convinced one of their classmate to eat Muggle glue, allegedly giving him super powers. They laughed for a while, and then Hermione asked the only question that could wipe the smile off Alice's face.

"Who's Max?"

Alice fell silent. She didn't want to answer that question and at the same time, she was to blame. She had mentioned him three times already. She took a deep breath and managed to answer something to Hermione

"He is… he was James' brother. He died in the war. There's so much more to know about him, but I can't talk about him, it's too hard". Her voice had broken at the end and she looked on the verge of tears.

Hermione felt guilty. "I'm so sorry I asked, I had no idea you had lost someone close to you"

Alice smiled sadly "Who hasn't?"

They fell silent for a while, until Alice asked Hermione what she thought of the new international policy they were launching. She quickly regretted it as Hermione was unstoppable on the subject.

After a solid half hour of debate, Hermione changed the subject and asked her how she found Charlie.

Alice didn't know how to answer that either. She figured that blunt honesty was worth a shot with Hermione. She wasn't officially part of the family yet, and Alice had to tell someone.

"Can I be honest ? I have no idea. I find the whole concept of the law ridiculous, so I didn't get my hopes high. He's handsome. But even though I really tried last night, I know nothing about him. The only part of the conversation where he actually gave a real answer was when I asked what he did for a living. And he looked nervous, as if I was going to judge him or something. I just don't understand him. I tried. I really did. I ask him to come and see what I did for fun, and told him to bring friends, and he still looked as if I had kicked his puppy or something, I just…

Hermione interrupted her rambling

"Merlin, that's a real answer. I don't really know him, as he is away in Romania a lot, but I can tell you why he was feeling nervous about telling you about his job. He has been scared that his wife, whoever she would be, would make him change jobs."

Alice looked puzzled. "Why would I do that. Our lives are already changing so much without our consent, if the prospect of being fried up like a chicken by a dragon allures him, who am I to judge?"

Hermione smiled. "I think you should tell him that. Maybe not in a way that would sound like you don't care at all if he's "fried up like a chicken" but still."

They got up and chatted away until they were in front of the IWC building. Each said her goodbyes and made plans to meet up the next day for lunch.

Alice smiled as she re-entered her office. At least Hermione was nice. And she now knew her future husband's sister's name. Little victories, she thought.


	4. Chapter 4

Hey everyone, sorry for the long delay, I've been super busy !

Thanks to Fremionelife99 for the beta reading :)

Nothing you recognize belongs to me ! :)

* * *

Alice and Hermione quickly grew fond of each other during those daily lunch meetings. Hermione understood that there was much left unsaid about the part Alice had played in the European Order, and that she did not want to talk about it. Hermione understood that. Some parts of the ordeal she personally went through during the war were still too painful to mention. Malfoy Manor. Bellatrix. She shuddered and told herself for the millionth time that she was gone and it was over.

Hermione walked back home and thought again of the mystery Alice was presenting. They laughed and they shared some stories, but Alice never mentioned the Max guy again. Hermione knew he had died, and that it was painful to talk about the people we lost, but it seemed that there was something more to it. Anyway. The week had been horrible. So many emergencies occurred that the initial project she was working on had been severely delayed, she had been yelled at by her supervisor because she did not managed to keep the deadlines and she hadn't seen Fred in a week because she was too tired to do anything else than collapse on her bed and sleep until morning. But finally, the long-awaited Friday evening was there. She had been looking forward to sitting on her couch with a good book and a cup of tea and then sleep for the rest of the weekend for a week. Hermione arrived to her flat and unlocked the door, and she could almost taste the feel of long-awaited rest. She crossed the threshold and was greeted by a loud BANG and was suddenly covered in a gooish liquid. Fred stood there in her hallway, laughing his ass off.

"And THIS, is the first prank I play on you as your fiancée. Classic, but still good".  
Hermione just stood there, the brownish liquid messing the carpet her mother had given her for her birthday. She looked at Fred with utter disbelief for a slight moment then slopped down on her now-ruined carpet and started crying.  
The smiled on Fred's face vanished and was immediately replaced with a look of horror.  
_Oh dear Lord, what have I done ._

He sat down next to her and panicked  
"Oh Merlin, I'm so sorry Hermione, I thought it was going to be funny, please please please, stop crying. Look, it's all gone", he said as he sorted it out with his wand.

"Could you please stop crying, yell at me for being the stupidest fiancé in the history of the world, but please stop crying I can't stand it when girls cry, and it's even worse when it's you," Fred blabbed on and on as he panicked.  
"Well, it's even worse when it's me that made you cry," Hermione finally stopped sobbing while he kept talking ,"… And I say that Ron is an idiot, but seriously, I am the worse fiancé in the history of the world and you should complain to the ministry. No, I deserve that you complain to my mother. She will kick my ass, and throw me out of the house – even though I don't live there anymore – and then maybe even let Ginny jinx me with the bat-boggey hex we taught her. "  
"Nah, that would be too cruel". Hermione's tiny voice had interrupted his rambling. Fred quickly started apologizing again, but Hermione interrupted him.  
"No, Fred, it's not your fault. I've just had the craziest week at work and I was looking forward to having a cuppa, and put my pyjamas on and I wasn't expecting it, and I had missed you and … " This time Fred interrupted her by kissing her. It was sweet and tender and almost brought back tears into Hermione's eyes. He pulled away, winked at her and said, "Missed me, huh?" Hermione bursted out laughing at his antics. She pulled back his face towards her and kissed him again. A proper kiss, with passion and longing, and everything she needed after that week in Hell. It grew more and more passionate and Hermione was surprised when Fred pulled away again.

"Now, now, not that I mind where this is going, but I remember you saying something about pyjama's and a cuppa?"

He stood up and offered his hand to help her up. She went along with him as he led her towards the couch.  
"Okaaaaaaay. Since the first part of the amazing Friday night I had planned kind of sucked, I am going to upgrade the loving romantic dinner I also had planned. So.. You sit right there", he said as he sat her on the couch, "you relax right there," he added as he transfigured her work attire in silk pyjamas and brought her a book and a glass of wine,"while I cook this wonderful dinner for the two of us." Hermione tried to protest and help him out, but he shoved the book unto her hands, "Don't make me use a glueing charm to stick you to the couch, because I will do it." The firmness in his tone and the memory of the prank he had just played on her convinced her to stay put.  
Satisfied that she was going to let him prepare dinner, he walked towards the kitchen and closed the door separating it from the living room. For an entire hour, she was distracted by the constant noise coming from her kitchen. However she stayed true to her word, until he popped his head through the door and announced that dinner was ready. She dropped her book and almost ran to the kitchen.  
"Oh Merlin Fred, this is…. Amazing."  
Molly had taught him well. The table was covered with dishes that looked all delicious. Hermione looked up to Fred's face and saw that he was waiting for her reaction. She stood on her toes to kiss his cheek.  
"Thanks Fred, this is truly amazing. Way better than the evening I had planned." He smiled at her as they sat down and enjoyed their dinner.

* * *

Charlie burned down his dinner. He always thought that was the irony in his life. He tried his best not to get burned during the day and always ended up burning something during the evenings. He opened his kitchen window to try and dismiss the smoke. He was going to head down to the local pub to get something decent to eat when someone knocked on his door. He wondered who that could be, and really hope it wasn't Kendra. He had managed to avoid her all week and hoped that she would understand that their occasional hook-ups would de facto cease as his engagement occurred.  
Alice stood on his doorway. At least it wasn't Kendra. Alice smiled up at him through the many bags she was carrying. Charlie took the ones that threatened to collapse and move so that she could get inside. The February evening in Romania was way too cold for her leather jacket.

"Well. Hi," Charlie said as he laid the bags on his coffee table. Alice untangled herself from her scarf and then smiled.  
"Hello. You seem surprise to see me. I did not get the answer to the letter I sent, but I figured I would come down anyway." Charlie looked puzzled.  
"Did you get the letter I sent this…" she was interrupted by the tapping of an owl on the living room window. Charlie went to retrieve the letter. The owl looked ancient and ready to collapse. Charlie fed him scrapes from the ruined dinner he had prepared.  
Charlie held up the letter and smiled at Alice. "I guess you're talking about this letter".  
Alice looked embarrassed. "Oh God, I really thought you knew I was coming, I'm sorry, I did not mean to intrude on your evening, you probably have some plans."  
Charlie smiled. "Not really, I was going to head for the pub downtown. The thing you are smelling is my dinner, I seem to have a problem with flames when they don't come from a dragon." She had the courtesy of laughing at his joke. She pointed to the bags she had brought with her.  
"I have brought everything you need to do pizza ! I'm not the best cook in town, but if you have an oven, I'm your girl," she said while she was rummaging through one of the bags ,"and also, I've come bearing Firewiskey," she added as she held up the two bottles.  
"I figured we might not have started on the right track, and alcohol might help remove the embarrassment, providing that we remember tonight afterwards."  
Charlie quickly agreed. He had the time to think over their meeting during the week, and after an earful from his sister, who was not pleased with his behaviour towards his fiancée during the show, he had to acknowledge the fact that he had not been a good company for his future wife. He had been wondering what to do to redeem himself, but she had taken the matters upon her own hands.

They ate quickly as they had light conversation about his work at the reserve. He showed her some pictures of the dragons and dragon tamers, and he explained the Weasley family to her. Alice only had one little sister and was confused by the many siblings he had.

Once they finished dinner, they settle down in the living room, and two glasses appeared in front of them as the rest of the dishes washed themselves.

"Nice housing magic" Alice commented. "I may have completely misunderstood the kitchen advice I received from my mother. But I do manage the housecleaning spells quite well."  
"We'll be a winning team in our house then," Alice jokingly added. However, they both realized at the same time that it was the first time the upcoming marriage was mentioned since the pairing.  
"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean it to be awkward, but maybe we should have the talk now, you know, get it out of the way?"  
"Sure, but I'm certain this will help" Charlie answered, as he poured two glasses of Firewhisky. They both downed their drinks and looked at each other.

Charlie cleared his throat and asked her the first thing that popped into his head.  
"Do you want children?"

Alice seemed to be very uncomfortable at this. "Um, to be honest, I don't really know how I feel about children. I never really liked them, and I always figured that this would be a problem for the future. I never thought I would have to have children in order to remain in the community. You?"  
"I never thought I would settle down, so kids seemed to be out of the question. I like them though, but I don't want seven of them."  
"You did not want to settle down? What does that mean for me?" Her tone had turned cold suddenly.  
"I never met anyone that accepted to be put second after my career, and I understand that they wouldn't, but dragon keeping is the only thing I really like to do, and it usually doesn't go well with a family life"  
Alice didn't answer for a while. Then she reached for the bottle and took a large swing of it, not bothering with pouring it in her glass.  
"We're in for a big mess, aren't we? We don't know each other, we have completely different lifestyles and we don't have the same projects for the future. We also have to be married in a few mouths, and starting a family sooner than either one of us wants it."  
She looked so sad that Charlie had to do something. He came and sit next to her on the couch and they sat together in silence for a while. She put her head against his chest, and closed her eyes, seeming to will back tears.

Charlie stroke her hair and said : "Now here's an idea," she looked up at him, showing that she was paying attention, "Maybe we should determine Unforgivable of our owns. You know, stuff that neither of us will be prepared to forgive the other. That way we can determine what is really important to each other and manage to make this work. "  
Alice smiled. "Sure. You go first though"

Charlie stood up and went to retrieve his glass. He sat down opposite her, on the floor. She sat down on the floor too, mimicking his action. They were perfectly symmetrical, with the bottle of Firewhisky in between them.

"Alright. I can't give up dragon taming. I really love it here, and I don't see how I can do anything else"  
Alice took a sip from her glass and nodded. "Would you be opposed to transferring to a Dragon reserve in Wales ?"  
"If that is really important to you, we may negociate. Do you really want to?"  
Alice shifted, uncomfortable. "My career is important too, and I don't really want to take a Portkey everyday twice a day to go to work. My family is in London, and I am quite used to see them everyday. Maybe we can wait until we are married to really decide what to do, but it would be nice if you got information about a possible transfer."  
Charlie agreed to it. "Fine, I'll ask what is possible. Your turn !"

"Okay, this is going to be a big one I think. I need James. I know it's weird, but we have been through some hard stuff, and I cannot fancy a life without him. He is more than my brother, and without him I wouldn't be here. I need you to be okay with the fact that I am going to need him, and see him everyday. You mustn't feel threatened by him, I need you to be on speaking term with him. It would be nice if you were friends, but I'm not asking for that much, I know he is much to take. "

Charlie felt uncomfortable. "Are you sure there's nothing between you? I know you told me he was gay, but still, he is handsome, and you are very close, and I don't actually know where I'm going with this."  
Alice smiled, reached to take his hand. "I promise you that there's nothing between him and me. I love him, and he loves me, but in the most sexless way that exists. I've known him all my life, and I'm not going to lie to you, he was my boyfriend when we were 4. That's the extent of the romantic side of mine and James' relationship. We've kissed a couple of times on dares and stuff, but nothing with feelings I promise. "  
Charlie squeezed her hands once. "I agree to your condition. I'll try to be friends with him"

* * *

Thanks for the comments and the reviews, I really appreciate it :)


	5. Chapter 5

Hey everyone ! Hope you're doing great ! Thanks for your support and especially to Fremione99 who beta'ed

Nothing you recognize belongs to me

The next morning

_Oh God. Oh God. Oh God. Why did I drink so much?_ The hangover was there before Alice even opened her eyes. The room seemed just a little too bright for her, and she summoned all the courage she had left to get up and close the blinds. Alice tentatively opened one eye, and was shocked by the bright red and gold shades on the walls. Her room was painted blue. Retrospectively, it might have been the first clue that she wasn't in her bedroom, but she was so hungover that it is only when she tripped on something that may have been a rug or may have been a pile of clothes that she realized something was off. She did not own a single rug and she was enough of a neat freak to keep her clothes neatly organized in her closet. Sorted by colour. Alice quickly dismissed the idea of her closet to get back to the matter at hand there. Her head hurt. And she was not in her bedroom. Alice always congratulated herself on her sense of priority, so she decided that the sun light had to be the first problem to tackle. She managed to find curtains and let out a sigh of relief when the room became significantly darker. She took a quick look at her surroundings. Romania. She was in fucking Romania. This was just further proof that James had the worst ideas in the world. She had complained to him that her relationship with Charlie was, at best, strained, and he had come up with this brilliant idea. Oh God, what happened last night? It is only when she noticed that the bundle of clothes she had tripped on earlier were hers that she noticed she was far less-clothed that she remembered. Her trousers and her sweater were on the floor, and the shirt she was wearing was not hers. She sat back on the bed. All the important bits were covered, she decided that her outfit didn't really matter. She tried to remember the night before.

The night before  
Laughter and alcohol. Usually a winning combination for a great evening. They had started the evening with twenty questions. Once they had the basics sorted out, like favourite colours (green for her, and red for him), favourite food (pizza for her and his mother's minced pie for him), favourite music, which ended with Alice blabbering on and on about bands he had never heard of but promised to listen to as soon as he could, they ended up sharing stories of their youths. Alice told him about her muggle mother and wizard father, and her little brother who did not show any particular gift for magic. Charlie told her stories of Hogwards, and after all she had heard from him and from Hermione, she started to regret having gone to Beauxbatons. Alice laughed her ass off as Charlie entertained her with one of the many mischiefs he had performed while in school. Apparently Fred and George did not have the monopoly on pranks in the Weasley family. The evening had taken a turn that she did not expect, with Charlie opening up and actually telling her stuff. She listened attentively when he told her that he had decided to leave England behind and follow his dream of dragon taming, without the consent of his parents. She had to recognize the fact that he was badass. And handsome. And funny. And sexy. That might have been the (too) many glasses that she had drunk, but Charlie became more and more attractive the more he talked. She was too lost in her thoughts to notice that he had stopped talking. Sitting opposite her, he looked at her with a small smirk on his face.  
"You look more interested in looking at me rather than listening to what I have to say, so I'll just stand there looking pretty."  
_Oh the cheek_. Two could play at this game, Alice thought.  
"Then you taking your shirt off would be extremely appreciated", Alice answered back, smiling. If Charlie was surprised by her reaction, he didn't let it show.  
"I will if you will." He raised an eyebrow, as to challenge her.  
She smiled. "Oh sweetie, you really don't know who you are talking to," As she simultaneously reached for her drink and silent spelled a vanishing charm on both their shirts. Charlie simply looked shocked at her magical abilities. He took a few moments to find his bearings then finally looked at her with something that her drunken-self could barely distinguish as awe.  
"I don't know many people with the ability of performing silent spells. I don't know many people who are able to perform any kinds of magic while drunk, and I definitely don't know ANY people who can perform a vanishing spell wandless. You're probably the only person who can do the three of them at the same time."  
Alice shrugged," You'd better get used to the fact that I'm a powerful witch. At least it might prevent you from pissing me off."  
Charlie laughed, "Yeah, I figure you will be slightly more dangerous than the regular witch who throws stuff at their husbands."  
"Oh, don't be so sure. I can do it the muggle way too. Ask your brother", she took another sip from her glass. "And I can throw stuff if you want. I won't miss," She smirked.  
"I'll be very careful not to piss you off then," Charlie brought his glass towards hers as he took that vow. They banged their glasses together, their drunkenness allowing them to spill most of the content on the floor, and they downed the rest of their glassed, before settling back in their seats. Alice was sitting on the floor, with her back resting against the couch. Charlie was sitting opposite her, sitting on a cushion she had thrown at him earlier in the evening. She couldn't even remember why now.  
Alice closed her eyes for a while, trying to keep the level of alcohol at bay. She opened them a few moments later, when she felt as if she was going to fall asleep if she kept them closed. Charlie was staring at her. More exactly, staring at her breasts. He seemed totally engrossed by the sight of her midnight-blue silken bra.  
"So you're a boob-man," she asked but it came out as a statement.  
Judging from his reaction, Charlie had forgotten that she was actually there. He became redder in the face that she ever saw him.  
"Whaaat," He looked so confused by her statement that it became funny.  
"According to recent studies, and by that I mean mine and James' experiences, men can divide in three categories. There are boob men, booty men, and weirdos who like other strange parts." Charlie still looked puzzled as she continued on her explanation.  
"You see, men either are fascinated by the boobs or the ass, and it is a 45-45 ratio. Always at least 10 percent left for the men obsessed with feet." Charlie looked utterly disturbed at that.  
"Believe me, you don't want to know".  
Charlie did not question her. However, he felt slightly insulted by her representation of the male world, "Are women also dividable in categories, or each of you are precious princesses that need special treatment ?"  
Alice smiled, "how many girlfriends did you have? Because, as your future wife, I can give you some advice. All women are special. All. Of. Them. They might have some similarities, but we actually are precious princesses that need special treatment. But, if you are an intelligent man, and I'm sure you are, you will treat me as a princess without me even noticing. Because we want equality and speciality at the same time."  
"That sounds easy enough," Alice wasn't drunk enough not to notice the sarcasm in his voice.  
"Mark my words, dragon boy. If I die in a crash or something, you might want to remember that when you are dating. Women are complicated. This is a fact. But, I intend to live long, so you have a life time to unravel the mysteries of my personality. Have fun."  
She winked at him and stood up to get to the bathroom. Well, more like tried to stand up because the change in her position brought the alcohol towards her head, and it is only thanks to Charlie's quick reflexes that she did not fall face first on the floor. It may have been the alcohol, the fact that he had just saved her from an imminent fall, or that her breasts and torso were pressed flushed against his ribcage, but Alice could feel the electricity between them. He changed slightly his position to hold her in a more comfortable way. They were face to face, the height difference between them lessened by the fact that Charlie was holding her up. The last thing Alice could remember was the tension between them as their faces came closer together.

Back to present

Alice sat up on the bed. _Oh don't tell me we slept together. Oh please let it be that we did not sleep together_. She had promised herself that she wouldn't screw things up. Sleeping with a guy she barely met, even if they were to be married soon, was not on her priority list. She needed to ask him. If she could manage to find him.  
She found it very weird that he was not in the room with her. As far as she remembered, the tension between them could well justify his presence on the bed with her. She quickly got up the bed and opened the bedroom door. Charlie was sprawled out on the sofa, which was way too tiny for him, as his legs and arms were dangling out of it. He had kicked the blanket off at some point in the night, and was only wearing boxer shorts.  
Alice took a moment to enjoy the view. Oh the shoulders. Alice bit her lip. He was gorgeous. He was surprisingly tanned, for a redhead, it must have been a first, some scars covering his muscled back. His ass looked fantastic. She was still observing his muscular legs when he opened one eye.  
She jumped slightly backwards when she heard him chuckle. "With the amount of time you're ogling me, I'm starting to think you're only marrying me for my body!"  
Alice tried to hide her blush. _Busted_. She tried to look away when he moved to get up, but he stretched. He stretched. For a moment, Alice became extremely aware of the six pack he was sporting. 'Oh dear God, I have to get in better shape if I have to be naked with him at some point', she thought. _Naked_. The thought brought back the mental image of the both of them together in a bed, and for the first time that morning, the idea became appealing. 'Oh get a grip woman, you are not a desperate hussy!' Alice mentally chastised herself before she realised his stretching was abnormally long. He is doing it on purpose.  
Alice smiled. She could play this game too. Asking him if he wanted coffee and breakfast, she walked towards the kitchen. She opened the fridge and found the eggs at the bottom of it. Perfect. She bent over, revealing her lace-clad buttocks. She heard him taking a sharp breath, and knew she could win that game. She got back to a standing position, putting the eggs on the counter. She rummaged through the kitchen to find a frying pan, and found one on top of the cupboards. Alice smiled. Who keeps a pan in such an impractical place? She forgot this as soon as she realised it was perfect for the rest of her plans.  
It was too high for her. She knew it before even trying to get it. However, she still reached for it on her tiptoes. Allowing her shirt to rise up. When she heard him coming closer she knew she had won. So easy. The smirk was quickly wiped from her face when she felt him pressed against her. He had pinned her against the counter to reach the pan. His front was pressed against her back and my oh my, she was in for trouble. He felt… nice would be an understatement, the word that seemed to be perfect would probably be… impressive. He felt impressive. Inappropriate thoughts ran through her mind again, and she was still trying to figure out if it was a good idea or not when she felt his hands on her hips. She turned around and looked into his eyes again. Uh oh. The kiss seemed unavoidable and Alice was happy that she might remember this one. She closed her eyes as he put one of his hands behind her neck. They leaned into each other and then quickly separated when they heard someone bursting through the door. Reflexes from the war still in his mind, Charlie spun around and shielded his fiancé with his body. Which proved to be completely pointless as she already had levitated one of the kitchen knives towards the intruder.  
"Holy Mother of Merlin, will you remove this thing from my face !"  
Charlie recognized his older brother's voice at once, but it wasn't the case of Alice, whom had never met him before. Charlie turned towards her and was shocked when he saw that the kind and cheerful woman he had learned to know the night before had been replaced with a cold-faced warrior. She looked threatening, and the fact that she was once again doing wandless magic proved that she was in fact dangerous. Charlie gently touched her elbow and told her who the intruder was. Alice looked at him in shock, and the knife that was floating dangerously towards Bill's eye suddenly dropped on the floor. Alice seemed to regain her composure and apologised to her future brother-in-law. She walked towards him and offered her hand to shake. Bill looked strangely uncomfortable, and Alice understood why, once she remembered the lack of clothes she had on. She excused herself and went back to Charlie's bedroom to get dressed. Bill and Charlie looked at each other for a moment, and went to the kitchen to make coffee. They weren't in the kitchen for 45 seconds when Alice came out of the bedroom fully dressed, her bag in the living room and telling Charlie some lame excuse about needed to go see her mother. She was out of his house so quickly that neither of the Weasley brothers in the kitchen had the time to react. They heard the POP of apparition behind the door and were left staring at the space she had previously been occupying.  
Bill looked at his brother "What the hell was that?"  
Charlie sighed "That was my fiancé freaking out."


	6. Chapter 6

In London, James was woken up by a loud banging on his door. It wasn't even nine in the morning! He did not know who it was, but whoever it was, they were going to need a good excuse. He opened his door and found Alice standing on his doorway soaking wet, her hair dishevelled and tears streaming down her face. He immediately took her in his arms, dwarfing her in his giant embrace. He could feel the tears wetting his shirt and heard her whispering "I messed up".  
'Good excuse, alright', thought James as he walked her inside and closed the door gently.

* * *

Not too far from there, another couple slowly woke up. Hermione rolled over in her bed, as she doesevery morning, and was shocked to meet resistance. She opened her eyes and realized that most of her body was now covering Fred's. He opened one eye and smiled. "Morning Love", he said as he wrapped his arms around her. "Morning", Hermione replied as she closed her eyes and tried to enjoy the moment. Fred smiled even more, the events of the night before coming back to him. _And what a night_!

_The night before_

Hermione reached for her glass of wine, feeling happy and her stomach full. This had been the best dinner she had all week. Fred had inherited his mother's talent in the kitchen, and he had prepared a roast beef with a potato gratin and carrots. It had been delicious. Hermione looked at her fiancé eating his third helping of potatoes. The Weasley appetite still impressed her after all those years. Fred interrupted her train of thought when he pushed his plate away and happily sighed.  
He looked at Hermione and said as shyly as Fred Weasley could, "So, did you enjoy it?"  
Hermione laughed, "Of course I enjoyed it, you idiot. I'm telling you, you can cook every day of our marriage if it is going to be this good. I'm going to get fat though."  
Fred reached for her hand and squeezed it.  
"You could gain a hundred kilos you'd still be the most beautiful witch on the planet. In fact, my mother gave me express orders to make you gain weight, she worries."  
It felt nice to be worried about that way... But Hermione couldn't deny she was skinny, she had lost a lot of weight during the war, and never quite managed to get it back, she didn't know if it was because of the stress or because of the injuries she had sustained in the war.  
Fred kept on talking "Actually, we are going to work on the weight gaining process right away, still have room for dessert?"  
Hermione was conflicted. She had no room left for dessert, but she couldn't wait to taste what he had made.  
"Just a little bit, thanks," Fred looked at her with a slight smirk, and got up to retrieve what he had prepared in the fridge. Hermione recognized the treat at once.  
"Raspberry tiramisu! How did you know it is my favourite?"  
Fred chuckled, "I have connections! But I'm not telling you anymore! Now taste it and tell me if it's as good as your mother's!"  
Hermione quickly grabbed a spoon and reached out to eat it directly from the huge bowl he had made.  
Fred gasped overdramatically, "Now now, what kind of manners is this?! You can't even wait until I fetch a plate?" Hermione smirked at him, "Well, you told me to taste it, didn't you?"  
Fred grabbed another spoon and reached for the bowl. Hermione almost cried when she tasted it.  
It was exactly like her mother's. She missed her. She swallowed the tears, cringing when she thought that it was the second time that evening that she cried or was on the verge of crying. She gave a meak smile to Fred who was looking at her expectantly.  
"This is delicious Fred, tastes exactly like how she used to make it."  
Fred reached for her hand again. Hermione's mother had died shortly after the war, from an untreated breast cancer that had reached the spine. Hermione had just had a few weeks with her after she restored her parents' memory.  
Her father had decided to go back to Australia afterwards, to start anew. She had seen him at Christmas, and it had been difficult. They weren't used to being just the two of them, and she had the feeling that her father was still mad at her for messing with his memories. Fred and Hermione finished the bowl quietly.

_The next morning_

Fred was interrupted in his recollection of the previous night by Hermione soft snores. She had fallen back asleep. He decided to get up and cook breakfast, then wake her up again to go have a walk in the Portobello Market. He had to manoeuvre his way out of her bed, but he managed to leave the bedroom without her noticing. He closed quietly the bedroom and stopped short when he saw how much rain was falling down. So much for the Portobello Market, he thought with slight disappointment. Changing his mind, and deciding to go back to bed after all, he reopened the door to find that Hermione had switched her position and was now spread eagle in the bed. It was marvellous how a tiny woman managed to take so much space. Fred, not wanting to risk waking her up, decided to take a shower instead. After his shower, he sneaked a peek into the bedroom again, to find that Hermione had still not woken up. He decided to let her sleep, as she had a pretty serious week, he figured she needed the rest.  
Fred quickly grew bored. He was not in his house, and he didn't dare try to touch the TV, as he had no idea how to make it work properly... or at all, really. He found a book laying on the coffee table, and decided to have a look at it. He sat down on the couch and conjured a blanket for himself. He settled in the couch and promised himself to read at least the first three chapters, to try and understand his fiancée's tastes about literature a little better.  
When Hermione found him, around noon, he was still in the same position, but he was halfway through the book and was so engrossed by it that he did not hear her coming. She rubbed the sleep off her eyes and looked at him from the threshold. Of all the things she had expected Fred to do, reading Oliver Twist was not on the extensive list.  
"Mad Eye Moody would have your skin, if he knew that you couldn't hear someone in the room" Hermione teased. She smiled when she saw him jumping out of his skin.  
He quickly recovered and answered, "Well, Mad Eye Moody did not believe I was even smart enough to read, so I think he would have been alright with it."  
Hermione smiled and joined him on the couch. She sat on the opposite end of the couch, summoned her copy of Pride and Prejudice and started reading. Fred settled back on the couch. Reading on a comfortable couch with his beautiful fiancée next to him had huge advantages on the things he had wanted to do initially, staying out of the rain being the first item on his list. Fred went back to reading, thinking that war had left much more in his future that he had originally thought.

* * *

James was pissed. Pissed at the weather, because it was pouring rain outside and he will probably need to leave the comfort of his home. Pissed at himself, because he had forgotten to close the bathroom window, and the carpet was now soaking wet. Pissed at the fact that he lived in a muggle neighbourhood and that he wasn't able to use as much magic as he wanted to dry it completely. Pissed that Alice was sound asleep in his bed while he was now wide awake. Pissed that he had given her the worst idea in the world, which included her getting drunk without supervision. Pissed at Charlie that she was wearing a shirt that was definitely not hers. Pissed that the universe had decided to fuck his weekend up. He made himself a cuppa. He moved around piles of rubbish, papers and clothes that were lying on his couch to sit down and close his eyes for a second. Alice always teased him at school because he needed to make lists. She was always the spontaneous one. James needed organization. He summoned a pen and a sheet of paper (muggle neighbours be damned) and wrote down:

What to do now? - Facts:

- Alice is sleeping

- Alice is seriously hungover

- Alice is sleep deprived enough to fall asleep on my shoulder.

- Alice cried.

- Alice "messed up"

- Alice is not wearing her own clothes.

Conclusion:

- Alice is an idiot.

James jumped to the conclusion that she had slept with Charlie and was already regretting it.

'Damn it Alice, you promised to make an effort this time.' James thought. He carefully thought about the possibilities of finding out precisely what was going on. Waking Alice up and demanding answers was not going to lead anywhere. He knew that much. She is not the kind of person who wakes up easily (one of the many things they have in common) and especially not if she was hungover. If previous happenings occurred again, and he knew they would, Alice would sleep until 1 or 2 in the afternoon, where the hunger she feels will be stronger than the sleepiness. James was no seer, but he knew she would want bacon, an apple and crackers. He had dealt with her like that enough to find a pattern. The only other option was to talk to Charlie. James sighed.  
'It is not going to end well,' he thought, as he went upstairs to get dressed. An unplanned trip to Romania imposed itself into his once free schedule.

* * *

Hey everyone, sorry for the late delay, I've had some kind of writting block. I have lots of ideas for the rest of the story, but couldn't manage to write them down. I'll try to do better next time :) Thanks for the support and the reviews, I really appreciate it ! And thanks to Fremionelife99 for the editing :)

Hope you're all allright !


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